Earlier this week at MPOW, we were talking about WorldCat. We tried to think of all the various ways we could get the word out to a broader "general public" audience about the richness of library resources in WorldCat. 65 million records, after all.
And what came out was MySpace. Now I know that Wired has labeled it Tired already (and possibly dangerous for young teens), but another colleague just sent me a Chronicle article (reg required) on how the CUNY Brooklyn College uses MySpace and has attracted 1700 friends. 1700! (I couldn't find it in a quick 3-minute sniff session, but I did find Georgia Tech Library.
We've been talking a lot lately about being where your users are--instead of the traditional approach of trying to attract users to you. MySpace seems to embody this 2.0-ness.
Is your library in MySpace?
*If yes, did you get a lot of approvals beforehand, or did you just *do it?* (Ask for forgiveness, not permission.)
*If no (and consciously no), why did you decide not to be there? Is it not befitting of a prestigious academic library, etc?
I'm just curious what the zeitgeist is, on libraries in MySpace...
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I was interviewed for background for the Chronicle article. Our library has been on MySpace and Facebook since January. You can find my psotings about MySpace and Facebook via Del.icio.us tags at:
http://del.icio.us/babyboomerlibrarian/facebook
http://del.icio.us/babyboomerlibrarian/myspace
"And what came out was MySpace. Now I know that Wired has labeled it Tired already"
Which, since it's still around, might be a sign that it's a meaningful new thing instead of a fad. MySpace should wear Wired's tired label with pride. (No, the lower-case "t" isn't sloppy typing. It's exactly what I mean.)
Then again you have legislation moving in the congress that would sharply limit if not ban sites like MySpace from schools and libraries alike http://news.com.com/2100-1028_3-6071040.html
"(Ask for forgiveness, not permission.)" If you can afford the consequences, no matter what they are.
Thanks all, for your insightful (if ominous, mr. anonymous) comments.
I saw that our own NetLibrary has a profile in MySpace. I don't think it has done a whole lot for the brand--positive or negative.
So my take away from this discussion is that MySpace is probably like a lot of things in Webworld: if you decide to do it, do it but then be prepared to keep doing it.
It is yet another way to be in user's virtual spaces--but we must also be conscious of the larger implications of being there (aka congressional legislation)...
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